Glaucus

You got me wondering about the weight of shot, so I poured some sinkers and weighed them. I used a 1? oz (42.524 gram) bank sinker mold for the test. lead pipe (p-trap) - 42.3g (1.492oz) 99.47% phone cable sheathing - 42.0g (1.482oz) 98.77% shotgun shot - 41.9g (1.478oz) 98.53% tire weight lead - 41.5g (1.464oz) 97.59% linotype alloy - 36.8g (1.298oz) 86.54% lead-tin solder 50/50 - 33.7g (1.189oz) 79.25% bismuth - 33.3g (1.175oz) 78.31% The percentages show how close each casting came to the 1? oz target weight.

Read this http://www.muskystriker.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1746&sid=f9ee788a7da5638ed92f130a6853a85f

It is possible that overheating will change the composition of some lead alloys. Tin, if present, will oxidize, thereby changing the alloy. A tin-lead alloy melts/solidifies at a lower temperature than pure lead. Here is a phase diagram for lead tin, it shows the melting temperatures http://www2.umist.ac.uk/material/research/intmic/phase/pbsndiag.htm Adding flux to lead alloys will reverse tin oxidation. I've used shot before and had no problems with it, if I got it for free I'd definitely use it. Some shot contains arsenic, which increases hardness. This site has more info about lead http://www.lasc.us/myweb/CastBulletNotes.htm

http://www.missouritrout.com/timsflyshop/ has 1/295'th oz jigs http://www.hagensfish.com/hagenscatalog_pg81-96-3.pdf has all kinds I bought some 1/64, 1/80, and 1/100 oz trout jigs from Janns Netcraft and was very pleased with their quality.

Disposable foam earplugs. Cheap, easy, can be stuffed into tubes, etc.

This is just a suggestion, but how about the Future Fisherman Foundation's Fishing Tackle Loaner project http://www.futurefisherman.org/programs/ftlp.php I?m sure they would accept any tackle donations.

http://fishermanshack.net/mcart/index.cgi?ID=TIV6XE&task=show&cat=Bodies&pgidx=10

http://www.mortac.com/ has white tubing. http://www.pen-tac.com/blades.html might have extra heavy SS spinner bodies.

http://www.matagi.co.jp/ has them, the direct link is http://www.matagi.co.jp/lure/b-pela.htm

http://www.ontariofishingclassifieds.com/cgi-bin/viewad.cgi?id=040519075929&spar=10000000000000010000001

Sorry, I misread your post :oops: Try C&D Lures http://www.cdlures.20m.com/

http://www.northcott.org/index.htm I assume you know about Tekcast & Conley http://www.conleycasting.com/index.html http://www.tekcast.com/

Wishin you a Happy (belated) Birthday! And thank you very much for creating this great site!

I wouldn't bake/cure 3D eyes. I powder paint my spinnerbaits, bake/cure them, stick on the eyes, and then epoxy coat them. I use envirotex lite, Home Hardware carries it (or can order it). After epoxing I hang the spinnerbaits on wire coat hangers from the dry cleaners, the paper label keeps the baits separated. Excess epoxy on the baits drips down the hooks and onto the floor , put some old newspaper underneath to catch the drips.

Molten tin will eat your pot, check this site http://www.wenesco.com/ceralac.htm

Here are some spreaders & molds I made. They are a popular rig on Lake Simcoe for whitefish and perch. Hooks are attached to the wire arms with short lengths of mono. The tops of the molds work as sprues and sprue cutters. The spreaders weigh about 3/8 and 5/8 oz, and can be made as 2-arm or 4-arm. I used a drill press, countersink & twist drill bits, a hacksaw and files to make the molds. Thanks for looking!

Here's another to add to your list http://www.dcamoulds.co.uk/

I just saw this new mold http://www.luremaking.com/catalogue/catalogue-index/catalogue-items/molds/ultra_minnow_spinnerbait.htm

It sounds like your refering to "investment plaster" used for the lost wax or Cire Perdue process of art casting. I'm not sure if it would work well for a soft plastic mold, because it is porous and made to crumble easily. Your dentist might have some or know someone who does because it's also used in making crowns, dentures, etc.

It's done, it turned out a bit heavier than before, 366 grams (12.9 oz)

dtrs5kprs, I used Canadian Tire house brand lightweight autobody filler. The label on the can said polyester with glass microspheres. I get some flash along the parting line and the mold gets really hot after 1 pour but I don't have any other trouble with it. It's not a mass production technique, but good for rapid prototyping and personal use. Jet ski season doesn't open here till July, I'll post a pic in the gallery if I get one . Richoc, the wire is K&S Engineering music wire I bought at a hobby shop.

Thank you for the compliments! This bait was designed for deep and/or fast muskie trolling. I powder painted it black and orange, now I'm waiting for the epoxy to cure. I included a 1/4 oz spinnerbait in the picture for reference.

The pattern was made with balsa. I glued two blocks of balsa wood to a hook and wire, shaped & sanded till it looked good, then sealed & smoothed it with paint. It was basicaly a wooden spinnerbait.

Here is a picture of the biggest spinnerbait I make. When finished it weighs about 12 oz. The wire is 0.094", the hook 10/0. I gotta paint & bake it next. Oh, the mold is made from auto body filler (Bondo) .

Here is a pic of my leadfree buzzbait. I used 0.062" wire, 1/8 oz cheap steel spoon, 1 copper rivet, 1 steel Pop rivet, 6/0 Eagle Claw 254 hook, and a hollow metal bead that's soldered to the hook to hold the skirt.